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monastic status and hierarchy

The notion of secondary and tertiary orders was developed in the Roman Catholic world, though by analogy it could be extended to non-Christian cultures. The triple division within the Franciscans and the Dominicans epitomizes the following hierarchy: the first order consists of ordained…

Tertiary orders in the Christian world were established above all by noblewomen who combined piety with pioneering medical knowledge. These women promoted religious pursuits that approached the monastic in intensity of dedication. The term tertiary did not originally evoke gender, but by the 13th century…